Bo arrived at the Shelter with a severely broken bone. But thanks to Friends of the Shelter, he was able to have surgery to help heal the leg and to
avoid amputation.

His mom says, "I love seeing him run free and thought you might too! Bo is doing amazing.. Vet says his leg has continued to improve but he still needs
to put on a little more wait. Also, he passed his temperament test at daycare yesterday and loved spending the day there with his sister! Thanks
again for saving him, he is truly just a great dog."

Zina, a young, happy go lucky and active labrador retriever mix, suffered a broken leg. Thankfully, the injury only broke her leg and not her spirit. Friends of the Shelter paid for her surgery and recuperative care. After healing, she was looking for her forever home and found it.

"She’s been a great dog for us and has become my son’s best friend (and vice versa). She’s full of energy and lives life to the fullest every day. There’s never a dull moment when she’s around, which is great! We couldn’t be happier."

Buttons received treatment and recuperative care for parvo before finding her forever family. She is enjoying her second chance and her time with the Ryan family.

"Buttons is doing great here with us. We have now trained her to drop the ball when playing fetch and Conner loves playing tug-o-war with her. She does favor Liam (pictured) and follows him around most of the time. I'm sure that the fact he usually has some type of crumb on him at all times has something to do with that. We really appreciate all that (was done) to bring her to us...that definitaly helped us to make sure that we made a great family for Darby (aka. Buttons).

Chloe came to the Franklin County Dog Shelter suffering from Heartworms. Friends of the Shelter funded her treatment and recuperative care.

"Abby and I met in August and after a few weeks of adjusting, we are very happy! At first, she had some anxiety and separation issues, but once she realized I would always return and this was her forever home, she calmed down. No medication required! She is a sweet dog and has to be by my side at all times. She is pushing 60 lbs. but will crawl up in my lap and let me cuddle her like a baby! We go to the park and she plays with all the other dogs. She loves to chase her friends, squirrels or birds. She does really well on the leash and we run about 3-4 days a week. Recently, she completed a 10 mile run with me! She loves to swim but hates the sprinklers! She is very smart and I have to lock the back gate or she will open it in 2 seconds!

Since I lost Cooper (my golden retriever) in 2009, I had been hesitant to adopt another dog. I didn’t think I could ever find another dog that was as wonderful as Cooper, so deciding to adopt Abby was difficult for me. I’m so happy to have her in my life. And I believe she is equally happy!"

George, formerly known as Jackson, came to the Shelter in 2008 in a starved state, physically weak with protruding bones and patchy hair, and a hobble from a past trauma to his back leg and hip socket. George's spirit wasn't broken, though. He was a happy boxer full of love and life.

George was adopted a few months later to his forever home. His new mom recently saw his old bio on the FCDS website.

"His picture was heartbreaking--my poor little guy--so skinny and missing patches of hair. I was so moved by his photo and the description: A happy-go-lucky, easy going, friendly guy who seems to love everyone he meets and sees the future with ever optimistic and hopeful eyes. So true!

I am so thankful everyday for the work you do at FOTS, for caring folks like Dr. Libby, George's foster mom, and for my sweet baby boy, George. Thank you for saving him and making it possible for George to be a member of my family!"

Nicki arrived at the Shelter with a broken leg - and it had been that way for a very long time. This 2-year-old Toy Fox Terrier's leg could not be saved, due to the severe damage. But just two days after her surgery, which was funded by donations to Friends of the Shelter, Nicki was her energetic self, trying to bounce and jump around.

Not too long after her surgery, Nicki found her forever home.

Nicki_love

"Nicki is doing great and we love having her as part of our family. She gets around so well that most people don't even realize she only has three legs! She can definitely keep up with Diesel and keeps him on his toes. As you can see from the picture, she and Diesel have bonded and love to play."

Carter arrived at the Franklin County Dog Shelter in the fall of 2009. He was flea infested, suffering from parvo virus, and wouldn’t eat or let people close. Dr. Libby and Friends of the Shelter gave Carter the care he needed to heal and to find his forever home.

Danyll adopted Carter later that year and boasts about the wonderful dog and companion he is.

“Carter just turned 3 years old and we had a party for him with about 20 of his friends. He is quite the socialite and loves everyone. He recently was entered into a local photographer's Cutest Dog in Columbus photo contest and won! Carter has been such a wonderful addition to our family and I'd like to thank you for taking such great care of him when he came into Franklin County with parvo. He is extremely spoiled (but well deserved) and has so much fun playing witCarterBarh his brother and sister, Thomas and Lexi (our cats).

Thanks again for helping my baby boy get back to health. He is truly the love of my life!”

- Danyll Rougeux

Danyll also shares that Carter loves to play with the neighbor’s labs, enjoys their routine trips to the dog park, and has learned many tricks, including how to herd. He travels twice a month to a farm near Cincinnati where he herds sheep.

Sherry came to the care of Friends of the Shelter to heal from a case of kennel cough. Sherry was also a fearful dog, scared of many things. After receiving TLC from Dr. Libby, Sherry was soon adopted by the Richardson family.

“We just love her to death. She really loves to just run in the back yard. Her spot on the bed is between our two pillows. Ruby and her are getting along great. It seems like they have been best friends for a lifetime.

We are still working on Sherry's fear of strangers and odd noises. But she is a wonderful dog and we are so lucky to have her as a part of our family.”

Sugar's story is a miraculous one. She came to the Shelter in bad shape – a puppy weighing just over a pound, limp, and near death. Friends of the Shelter funded the pup’s care with Dr. Libby Kinsel at Creature Comforts Veterinary Hospital. Sugar would not eat and had seizures from low blood sugar. Dr. Libby force-fed the puppy every 4 hours around-the-clock for a month in an effort to save her life. When it seemed all hope was lost for the little Shih Tzu mix, Dr. Libby discovered the secret for getting Sugar to eat on her own – McDonald’s hamburgers.

"She ate every time I offered her a hamburger from that day forward, which meant twice daily trips to McDonald’s,” said Dr. Libby. “She would only eat McDonalds – not Burger King, Sonic, or Wendy’s.”

She was diagnosed with hypothyroidism and began making her recovery, eventually eating puppy food and becoming the playful pup she was meant to be.

Kurt Jeffers and Joey Robinson had been looking for another dog to add to their family and a sibling for their Shih Tzu, Emma. After months of working with the Franklin County Dog Shelter to find their perfect match, Joey and Kurt received an email about Sugar, stating she was currently in the care of Dr. Libby due to a thyroid condition and would need close monitoring for the duration of her life.

"That news did not faze Joey and I,” said Kurt. “After reading her bio, we were anxious to meet her."

When they first took Sugar home she was small and only had patches of hair.

"She looked like she had a rough go of it…but I could see something in her eyes. And Emma fell in love with her within an hour. We knew we had found the right match.”

Sugar’s hair has since grown in fully and she is gaining weight. She is an active pup full of energy and happens to love music - often trying to sing along.

“We are thankful to everyone who played a part in bringing Sugar into our lives,” shared Kurt. “She is a real miracle and surprises us everyday.”